House, Senate Committees Back Additional Budget Cuts

WASHINGTON--The House and Senate Budget committees last week
approved budget resolutions that essentially propose a freeze on
discretionary spending through fiscal 1997.

Both resolutions would reduce the spending increases President
Clinton requested for education, job training, and social-service
programs.

But it is difficult to assess the specific impact of the resolutions
on education and child-welfare programs. The non-binding resolutions
are advisory only, and the final decisions will be made by
appropriators. In addition, the resolutions make recommendations for
broad categories of spending, not individual programs.

The House Budget Committee recommended $56 billion in spending for
education, training, and social-service programs, including $41.4
billion in discretionary spending and $14.6 billion for
entitlements--programs such as student loans and welfare, under which
all eligible recipients can receive aid.

The Senate Budget Committee recommended spending $54.9 billion on
that category of programs, including $37.1 billion for discretionary
programs.

But neither panel suggested how that money should be divided among
the three areas.

The President had asked for $56.8 billion, including $42.1 billion
for discretionary programs.

Although its impact on specific education programs cannot be
determined, observers here say last week's action will restrict the
ability of appropriators to fully fund Mr. Clinton's education
proposals and at least provide inflation adjustments for existing
programs.

"It means an extension of all against all in the appropriations
process, and pits education against health care and against the
environment, which is something we hoped to avoid with this
Administration,'' said David Baime, the director of federal relations
for the American Association of Community Colleges and the vice
president of the Committee for Education Funding. "It puts even further
stress on the initiatives and investments Clinton has proposed.''

An aide to Rep. William H. Natcher, D-Ky., who chairs the House
Appropriations Committee, said the budget panels' actions are "going to
constrain things.''

But at the request of Leon E. Panetta, the director of the Office of
Management and Budget, the committee reduced the amount of money
dedicated to recent Pell Grant shortfalls. Instead of allocating about
$2 billion to completely cover the current shortfall, as Mr. Clinton
originally proposed, $1.86 billion would be appropriated for that
purpose.

The bill also includes $500 million for a Head Start summer program,
$500 million for a Chapter 1 summer program, $235 million in Chapter 1
funding for states that will be hurt by the shift to 1990 Census data,
and $1 billion for summer-youth job training.

Some conservative Democrats, however, are pressing Mr. Clinton to
scale back his $16.2-billion proposal.

An aide to Rep. Charles W. Stenholm, D-Tex., a leader of that group,
said he had not made specific recommendations to the President, but he
is particularly troubled by the Chapter 1 spending aimed at cushioning
the Census-data blow.

"That clearly isn't economic stimulus, and it isn't even good public
policy,'' the aide said.

Meanwhile, Rep. Timothy J. Penny, D-Minn., another deficit hawk,
sent a letter to the House leadership saying, "It is hard to understand
why the request for additional spending for long-term investments such
as Head Start [and] Chapter 1 ... cannot wait until the regular fiscal
year 1994 appropriations process.''

Although the conservative Democrats hope to persuade Mr. Clinton to
make some changes in the bill by the time it goes to the floor on March
18, the aide to Mr. Natcher said the chairman's reputation should help
him secure the votes needed for passage if a compromise is not
reached.

"I think Mr. Natcher's ability to push this thing through is high,''
he said. "That's not to say it isn't going to be difficult.''

The Senate has yet to begin work on the stimulus bill.

No 'Super-Appropriations Bill'

The House and Senate budget panels passed their resolutions only
after lengthy and often acrimonious exchanges between Republicans and
Democrats.

The House committee defeated a Republican alternative by a vote of
27 to 15, with only freshman Rep. Rick A. Lazio, R-N.Y., voting against
party lines.

The proposal would have provided $51.5 billion for education,
training, and social-service programs.

Its recommended cuts included reductions in several education
programs, such as a complete phase-out of impact aid, which would have
saved $151 million in fiscal 1994 and $1.6 billion over four years,
according to documents provided by Rep. John R. Kasich, R-Ohio, the
budget panel's ranking Republican.

Mr. Kasich also proposed reducing funding for the Corporation for
Public Broadcasting and arts and humanities education by 50 percent,
saving $700 million in fiscal 1994 by making unspecified changes to the
campus-based student-aid programs, and reducing guaranteed lenders'
profit on Stafford Student Loans by 1 percent.

After providing a document listing these and other cuts, the ranking
Republican chastised the Democrats for challenging the G.O.P. to
propose specific cuts and failing to act in a similar manner.

"You told us to prepare a rigorous document, which we've prepared,
and you yourself have failed the test,'' Mr. Kasich said.

But Rep. Martin Olav Sabo, D-Minn., who chairs the committee, said
that is not his panel's job.

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